In the fields of computational control and research, events are abstractions which are typically based upon physical phenomena. Researchers or real-time managers may gain access to these events through mathematical, numerical, textual, audio or graphical techniques. Although each of these techniques augments the perspectives brought to bear on an event, each has its advantages and disadvantages when conveying information.
Comprehension of information results from the interplay and juxtaposition of these various techniques. That is, the juxtaposition of graphical, textual, and numerical techniques gives graduated access to data streams. Visual representation, i.e., the use of visual and auditory displays to represent information, has emerged as a desirable environment with which to effectively convey information, because visual representation allows simultaneous presentation of multiple data streams.
Some general-purpose visualization systems include visual programming interfaces for researchers/users to create their own visualization environments from a library of program modules. The researcher/user must have a reasonably good understanding of software coding, because a visual program module within a standard visual programming interface is a software-coded process consisting of a sequence of operations that are organized to produce a specified result. The visual programming interfaces contain graphical tools for users to interactively assemble the modules into dataflow configurations of communication processes so that the users may visualize their data and created dataflow configurations. That is, an output port of one module may be connected to the input port of another module so that when data flows between the modules, the latter module's operations are performed. This requires that the user understand object oriented programming structure and data representation techniques to connect and interpret connected modules. A typical dataflow configuration may thus include a series of interconnected modules that are configured to read data, process that data into new representations, and then display the data on a computer screen.
Despite their flexibility towards customizing dataflow configurations, the general-purpose visual programming systems are not well suited for exploring real-time data streams' interactions or computational research data, or creating multimedia experiences, because they lack essential interactive capabilities and require a user to have expert programming knowledge. For example, user interaction is typically limited to selecting the means for displaying the data without any means for interactively manipulating the data at various stages of the dataflow configuration. As a result, data can only be arranged in specific preconfigured visual arrangements.
In other words, known visual programming systems allow users to merely visualize their data in pre-established ways. This is particularly true in applications involving analysis of empirical data and multimedia programs that allow increased user expression. However, in order to fully analyze or experience their data, users must have real-time tools to probe the value of individual data elements as they impact a variety of parameters. Then they must be able to apply special procedures to a small region-of-interest, e.g., compute the mean data value of a subset of data elements. Further, users must be able to visualize relationships between the data elements in several images or volumes which may span several windows of a computer display.
In summary, there do not exist any visual programming tools that allow a person with little or no programming skill to create in real-time elaborate multimedia audio-visual episodes, computational research studies or human-machine interface with which anyone can interact using a multitude of input and output devices.
The present invention is directed to overcoming the foregoing and other disadvantages. More specifically, the present invention is directed to providing a visual programming interface that allows a user with no programming skill to create in real-time programs for exploring management control options, computational research data relationships or multimedia experiences.